High-quality leads are the potential customers who are most likely to make a purchase—in other words, they’re the lifeblood of any thriving company.
In this article, we’re exploring short term strategies and actionable tips that can start generating more and better leads right away. We’ll also cover longer term strategies for sustainable lead generation.
First up, a refresher on what makes a high quality lead in the first place.
If you want to start getting more business now, then you need Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs). These are potential customers who have been vetted and are considered ready for your sales pitch.
Unlike leads that are just beginning to show interest, SQLs demonstrate a higher intent to purchase.
Leads are typically classified based on their engagement level: from those just learning about your service (cold leads) to those expressing direct interest (warm leads), and finally, to SQLs (hot leads).
Hot leads are your highest quality leads, because they have a higher conversion rate (i.e., they’re more likely to result in sales).
And, thankfully, there are some proven ways to generate more of them.
You can secure high-quality SQLs quickly when you take the right approach. Implementing these immediate, actionable strategies will enhance any lead generation efforts.
People trust their friends. Studies show that leads from referrals have a 30% higher conversion rate compared to other marketing methods. Moreover, referred customers have a 16% higher lifetime value than other customers.
That’s why referral marketing is the gold standard of lead generation. It capitalizes on word-of-mouth, by encouraging your existing customers to refer friends or colleagues to your business.
Better still, referral marketing lets you cast a smaller net, which is what you need for catching better fish.
Sure—there’s often value in casting a wide net for your marketing efforts. But wide nets bring in lots of leads—not necessarily those targeted ones you need to make sales right away.
But when people make referrals, they’re likely going to be recommending you to friends and colleagues who are actively looking for the service you provide. Talk about hot leads.
Optimizing your referral strategy is the best way to ensure it actually works. The following best practices will help.
Set Clear Objectives: Define what success looks like for your referral program. Whether it's a certain number of new leads, conversions, or a specific increase in sales, having clear goals helps in measuring effectiveness.
Create an Attractive Offer: Always keep in mind that referral marketing is an ‘I scratch your back, you scratch mine’ situation. That means offering incentives for both the referrer and the referred. This dual-sided incentive model not only motivates your existing customers to make referrals but also makes the offer more enticing to your potential prospects.
Simplify the Referral Process: Ensure the referral process is straightforward–for both you, and your clients. Digital gift cards are increasingly popular in this space–they’re easy to give, and people love getting them.
Promote Your Program: Actively promote your referral program through email campaigns, social media, and on your website. Highlight the benefits and rewards of participating in the program to maximize visibility and engagement.
Track and Optimize: Utilize Giftbit’s tracking features to monitor the performance of your referral program. Analyze which incentives are most effective, who your top referrers are, and adjust your strategy to improve outcomes.
Like we’ve established, people trust other people.
Specifically, 90% of people trust brand recommendations from friends. Meanwhile, 99.9% of customers read reviews when shopping online, and 49% of them trust reviews as much as recommendations from family and friends.
That’s why online reviews can be incredibly powerful for building trust and credibility–and why you should be trying to get more of them if you’re looking to boost your leads.
The following best practices can help encourage your satisfied customers to share their positive experiences (and thus help in your lead generation goals).
Incentivize Reviews: Offer a gift card as a token of appreciation for customers who take the time to write a review. Again, digital gift cards make for great incentives, because with the right platform they’re easy to manage and distribute, ensuring a streamlined process.
This is how Giftbit’s client OpenPhone doubled their customer reviews. With a simple Zapier integration, they were able to automate sending gift cards to customers who left them reviews.
“Our team needed an automated way of sending gift cards,” says John MacGaffey, Growth Marketer at OpenPhone. “Now thanks to an integration with Airtable, these can be sent instantly by simply flipping a switch—making things much faster and more efficient!
Make Leaving Reviews Easy: Provide direct links to your review platforms and clear instructions on how to leave a review. Consider creating a simple guide or video tutorial to assist customers through the process.
Respond to Reviews: Engage with the reviews by thanking customers for their feedback. For example, Giftbit's Head of Marketing Zoe North makes an effort to personally respond to our reviews on G2. And don’t forget to address any negative reviews promptly and professionally, demonstrating your commitment to customer satisfaction.
Leverage Positive Reviews: Share standout reviews on your website (see an example below!) and social media channels. This not only showcases real customer satisfaction but also encourages others to leave reviews.
Giveaways can be an effective way to generate buzz and attract leads. That said, they’re also an easy way to cast too wide a net again, and get too many irrelevant leads.
Offering a prize that doesn't align with your brand or product can dilute your message or fail to attract your target audience (and potential leads) effectively.
For example, we’d all love a beach vacation, so if you offer one up as a giveaway, you’ll probably get lots and lots of entrants—including lots and lots of people who aren’t really interested in your offerings.
But say you sell fitness equipment. Instead, you could giveaway digital gift cards to health and wellness brands, and you’re more likely to fill your funnel with health-conscious consumers who are more likely to be interested in your product.
Your prizes should be relevant, and they should be easy to send, too. Don’t go nuts trying to find a physical offering that you can easily ship to your winner.
Instead, offer gift cards that resonate with your ideal customer’s interests.